Saturday, April 28, 2012

No change in policy denying visa to Modi, asserts US

Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid takes a jibe at the CM; says Modi
should a give to thought to why the world thinks so poorly of him
WASHINGTON/DELHI The US has said there is no change in its visa policy
with regard to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi. “Our position
on the visa issue hasn’t changed at all,” State Department spokesperson
Victoria Nuland told reporters at her daily news conference. Nuland
was responding to questions on the letter written by Congressman Joe
Walsh to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that the US government
reverse its 2005 decision not to issue US visa to Modi. The letter
by Walsh was written about a fortnight ago. “If we do respond, it’ll be
along familiar lines,” Nuland said. In a statement, the Indian American
Muslim community demanded the State Department should not change its
2005 policy on Modi’s visa. Meanwhile Union Minister for Law and
Justice Salman Khurshid took a jibe at Modi stating that he should
contemplate why the United States was still not in favour of giving him a
visa. Khurshid mentioned it was a matter of concern that a
question mark hung over someone who was heading a major state in the
country. “I am sure that they (US) look at everything they want to
look at... not for us to comment on US policy but it is a matter of
serious concern that there is this kind of serious question mark on the
personality of somebody who leads a major state in our country,”
Khurshid told reporters in Delhi. The Union minister was asked to
comment on the US, which had in 2005 decided not to issue visa to Modi,
and later reiterated that there was no change in its visa policy towards
him. “It is sad but we have that. I hope that the person concerned
will reflect upon this and think about it and think about why the world
thinks so poorly of him,” Khurshid added. Modi was first denied a
visa in 2005 by the United States. The US had then said that it could
not issue him a diplomatic visa because of its Immigration and
Nationality Act which states that “any foreign government official
responsible for serious violation of religious freedom is ineligible for
a visa.” Modi had described it as an attack on India’s sovereignty. But
the US also revoked an earlier visa that had been issued to him in
1998. And though the US government may not have warmed up to Modi,
its companies have shown willingness to partner him. Car giant Ford is
setting up a unit at Sanand near Ahmedabad and there are proposals to
make investments in the chemical sector in south Gujarat. The
US-India Business Council (USIBC), a powerful forum that brings together
captains of industry from both countries, has hailed Gujarat and
Karnataka, another BJPgoverned state, as ideal investment destinations
within India. Given his ban from the US, Modi often addresses
Gujaratis in the country via teleconference, urging them to help bring
more investment to the state while highlighting the opportunities for
investors.

Teesta Setalvad

Teesta Setalvad is an educationist, journalist and human rights activist who has been committed to an egalitarian and diverse India, at the forefront of the struggle for justice equality and non discrimination. She co edits Communalism Combat heads and directs Education for a Plural India programme and is Secretary of Citizens for Justice and Peace. CJP is a Mumbai based trust committed to accountability, transparency and punishment to perpetrators of mass crimes within Indian democracy.